There are short-term and long-term health risks associated with inhalant use. The highly concentrated toxic chemicals ininhalantscan have devastating effects on the body, even the first time you use them. With prolonged use, the brain, heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, and potentially the reproductive system can be damaged.
Table of Contents
多长期吸入使用会影响大脑
继续使用吸入剂通过剥夺氧气并通过不断暴露于有毒化学品来损害大脑。这可能导致脑组织丧失，称为萎缩，损害：
- Thinking
- Learning
- 记忆
- Judgment
- Impulse control
受吸入剂使用的大脑的一个领域是流行回忆的海马。这里的伤害会影响学习新事物和记住旧事物的能力。颅神经可能会导致失明和听力损失损坏。9.
The cerebral cortex, which is the gray, outer area of the brain, is also affected by inhalant drugs. In severe cases, you can develop:2,3,8,9
- Confusion
- Dementia
- 急性精神病
- Hallucinations
- Delusions
- 人格变化导致侵略，敌意，焦虑和恐惧
- Suicidal thoughts
- Depression
- 一种ddiction to drugs and alcohol
Continued use of inhalants breaks down the protective outer covering that coats the brain’s nerve fibers and damages the peripheral nervous system. Like a broken electrical wire, this kind of damage short circuits how impulses are passed along resulting in:
- Loss of coordination
- Spasms
- Tremors
Severe damage can affect speech, walking, and bending and contribute to a loss of feeling in the limbs.
How Long-Term Inhalant Use Affects the Body
因为TH.e liver and kidneys metabolize what the body ingests, they can be damaged by toxic chemicals in inhalants. Solid particles, called calculi, can build up in the urine, making it difficult or painful to urinate and you may also have an increased risk of:3.那9.
- 尿路感染
- Hepatitis
- Liver failure
There are many different kinds of inhalant drugs, and the specific chemicals in them can inflict unique damage on the body. The benzenes in gasoline can:
- 削弱免疫系统
- Damage bone marrow
- Increase the risk of leukemia
- 一种ffect the reproductive health system
点去除剂和脱脂剂中含有的三氯乙烯导致：
- Liver disease
- Reproductive problems
- 听证会和视力丧失。
笑气（氧化亚氮或己烷）原因：
- Loss of coordination
- Blackouts
- 改变血压和心脏功能
Toluene, which is found in gasoline, paint thinners, and correction fluid, causes the loss of brain tissue which results in:
- 认知问题
- 听证会和视力丧失
- Spasms
- Loss of coordination
Nitrate use is associated with sudden death, immune suppression, and changes in the oxygen levels of the blood which can affect oxygen supply to vital tissues and organs.
还有一些研究表明，使用硝酸盐可能导致肿瘤的发育。长期吸入滥用还增加了结核，艾滋病毒/艾滋病和其他性传播疾病的危险。3.那5.那7,9
Risk of Sudden Death and Overdose
一种t any time using inhalant drugs, even the first time, breathing can slow down or stop, preventing oxygen from getting to the brain. This is called Sudden Sniffing Death (SSD).
因为inhalant drugs are central nervous system (CNS) depressants, they slow down your breathing and heart rate. Inhaling too much can cause:
- Your breathing or heart to stop
- Heart attack
- Your kidneys to shut down
- 呕吐（这可能导致窒息或窒息）
- Seizures can occur
- Death
一种n estimated 100 to 200 people die every year from causes related to inhalant use.5.
新鲜空气有限的封闭地点加剧了SSD的效果和风险。这些化学品也是高度可燃的，并且当没有仔细处理时可能导致严重的烧伤和死亡。使用具有潜水状况的吸入剂，如哮喘增加了风险。吸入后的沉重运动或身体活动也可以增加突然停止心脏的SSD的风险。
The high from inhalants is almost immediate but only lasts for a few minutes. This leads to huffing more and more substances to stay high and to mixing different substances. These might be different kinds of inhalants but it also might be mixing inhalants with other drugs, a practice that health care professions point out is extremely dangerous and increase the risk of sudden death.
Overdosing from using too much or a particularly strong inhalant is also a risk. An overdose usually starts with nausea and vomiting, then blacking out or becoming disoriented, possibly seizures, and then unconsciousness and death.5.那6,7,8
控制受损
一种物质使用障碍当你继续使用你知道有害的药物且甚至想停止使用的药物。决定在危险或冒险的情况下使用吸入剂，例如饮用和驾驶或在缺乏足够氧气的封闭式房间里吸入吸入剂是另一个失去控制的标志。最后，在依赖药物之前，做出你永远不会做的事情是失去控制的另一个方面。
当您继续使用时，您体验了渴望，想想一直使用它，尝试退出或削减，但再次回复使用。白天的所有活动都集中在从药物中获取，使用，然后再次开始。老朋友和社会关系被丢弃并用使用或销售药物的人取代。
渴望这种药物可以发生在任何时间或present almost continually but are almost always triggered by certain events, places, and people. One way to evaluate how intense the cravings for a drug are is to ask yourself if there has ever been a time that you could not think of anything else other than using.1,3
Increased Tolerance and Withdrawal
随着您继续使用药物，您将在心理上依赖，您的身体变得物理上瘾。增加宽容develops when your body needs more and more of a drug to get the same high because your metabolism has adapted to consuming the drug. This is very dangerous because you can take too much of the drug as you try to get high and overdose.
Withdrawal symptoms when you stop using are a signal that the body has become addicted to the substance. These are different from psychological cravings and involve:
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Tremors
- Hallucinations
- Seizures
When you are addicted, you are likely to keep using not just to get high, but also to avoid the onset of withdrawal symptoms.
没有植物的戒断一些药物可能是危及生命的，但新的治疗和药物可以大大帮助人们成功排毒。停止后2至5天的吸气滥用戒断症状，包括：9.
- Tremors
- 肌肉痉挛
- Feeling like bugs are crawling on the skin (delirium tremens)
- 焦虑
- Irritability
- Insomnia
- Confusion
- Seizures
- 焦虑
- Stomach pain
Recognizing the Signs of Inhalant Addiction and Abuse
很难识别吸气滥用的迹象，因为许多症状都可以看起来像其他疾病。因为most users are teens那mood and personality changes might be looked at as just a normal part of adolescence, especially if kids withdraw and become isolated from family and friends.
一种ccording to the American Psychiatric Association, a substance use disorder is present when impaired control, impaired social relationships, and withdrawal symptoms when stopping the drug are present.8.
Signs that friends, family, and teachers can watch for include:
- Chemical odors on the body and clothes
- Paint and oil stains on clothing
- Burns on fingers and clothing
- Discolored fingertips and nails
- Rashes around the nose or mouth
其他症状包括抑郁症，焦虑，浓度，遗忘，嗜睡，嗜睡，头痛和呼吸困难。失踪的学校和工作和撤回朋友，家庭和常见的娱乐和社会活动也是红旗。3.那6,8,10
While using inhalant drugs can do serious damage to the body, there is still good news. People with inhalant addictions can and do recover and benefit from cognitive behavior programs, rehabilitation, and participating in12-step programs。一种nd, with early identification, referral to treatment, and recovery, much of the physical effects of inhalants can heal.
If you are worried that someone you know might be using inhalant drugs, you can contact8.00-926-9037谁答案？寻找帮助。
什么是吸入药物？
吸入剂是人们呼吸高位的物质。许多家庭产品有化学品，当吸入导致兴奋感受时。这些包括：
- 烟雾剂如除臭剂，空气清新剂和发胶
- Gases such as lighter fluid, computer cleaning fluid, Freon, and nitrous oxide (laughing gas)
- Solvents such as degreasers, paint thinner, gasoline, and nail polish remover
Most of these products are easily found in your garage or kitchen cupboards. They are also cheap and easy to buy because they are not controlled substances. Nitrites, called “poppers or “liquid gold,” containing amyl nitrite are used primarily by older teens and young adults to heighten sexual experiences and are now illegal.
Inhalant drugs are “huffed” by breathing directly from the container, spraying the substance directly into the nose or mouth (dusting), or by first spraying the substance into a bag or balloon (bagging or ballooning) and then breathing into the bag. The chemicals are immediately absorbed into your lungs and then produce an immediate, but short-lived high. Because of this, you may try to prolong or maintain your high by repeatedly inhaling. This can lead to unconsciousness and even death, making it a very risky practice.1, 2
因为孩子们每天都有吸入产品的成年人，他们没有意识到它们有多危险。吸入药物可能导致依赖和成瘾，并且可能严重损害您的身体，情感和心理健康。因为吸入剂的化学物质是如此危险，因此它们可以导致心脏停止，窒息或火灾和爆炸猝死。
More than 22 million Americans aged 12 and older report using having used inhalants.3.在第8层年级，14岁左右的峰值使用，然后减少。4.一种bout 6% of 8TH.graders and about 1% of 12TH.过去一年中使用吸入剂进入的年级家。4.一种n estimated 0.2% of teens meet the diagnostic criteria for an inhalant use disorder.3.Despite the serious dangers associated with inhalant use, it remains one of the most poorly studied addictions and has been called the “forgotten epidemic.”3.
References
- 酒精and Drug Foundation, (2020, October 7).Inhalants。
- MedlinePlus. (n.d.)Inhalants。
- Howard, M.O, Bowen S.E., Garland E.L, Perron, B.E., & Vaughn, M.G. (2011).吸入在美国的吸入使用和吸入剂使用障碍。一种ddiction Science and Clinical Practice, 6（1）。
- National Institute on Drug Abuse, (2020 December 15).趋势与统计：吸入趋势和统计。
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2020, May 20).吸气虐待的其他医疗后果是什么？
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2020, April 13).How are inhalants used?
- Medscape。（2017年5月5日）。Inhalants。
- 一种merican Psychiatric Association. (2013).Substance-Related and Addictive Disorders. In Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th Ed.)。
- 一种nderson, C. E., & Loomis, G. A. (2003).Recognition and prevention of inhalant abuse。一种merican family physician那68（5），869-874。
- Brannon, G. (2019, Feb 19).Inhalant-Related Psychiatric Disorders Workup。Medscape。